Florida's worst offensive performance of the season spelled doom against one of the nation's best three-point shooting teams, as the Gators fell at Missouri, 66-47, on Sunday afternoon at Mizzou Arena.
The Gators actually led, 24-22, at halftime, but seven of the Tigers' first eight field goals in the second half were three-pointers and Florida wasn't able to play catch-up from long range.
Ronni Williams and Cassie Peoples both scored 12 points to lead Florida, while Kayla Lewis collected 11 rebounds with seven points. For Williams, it was her team-leading seventh consecutive double-figure scoring game, as she tallied double-digits for the 11th time this year and 25th time in her career.
Florida shot a season-low 23 percent (14-61) during the game, including 4-20 from long range, while Mizzou converted 40.7 percent during the game (22-54) and heated up for a 50 percent (14-28) clip in the second half when they outscored the Gators, 44-23.
Morgan Eye, the SEC's top three-point shooter scored 18 points as she hit 4-of-9 from deep to lead a 9-26 three-point effort for the Tigers, who also held the 50-39 rebounding advantage.
Quotes from the Court:
UF Head Coach Amanda Butler:
· Thoughts on the Game:
· “I really admire Missouri and Robin (Coach Pingeton) for the way they've handled all the adversity that's been thrown their way this year. I think they've responded with a great deal of toughness. We could take a page from their book. We're going through a little of that now with having some people out. They are a great example of how you pull it together and how you figure out how to be the best version of yourself when you're missing some key pieces. You have to give them a lot of credit for how they played in the second half. They shot the ball with a great deal of confidence, they do what they do. We had some key defensive breakdowns and really struggled offensively to a great shooting team on their home court.”
· UF's offense in the second half:
· “We shot poorly and unfortunately that's not a new trend for us. That's why it's just so important that we don't have those defensive breakdowns, in particular defensive breakdowns as rebounders. If you're not going to shoot well, we have to have a heroic effort on the boards and we didn't have that. You can't count on your shots to fall on the road but you can count on the way you defend and the way you rebound and that was not there for us tonight.”
Updated Records: Florida 9-8, 1-3 SEC … Missouri 11-6, 1-3 SEC
Turning Point:
· UF had somewhat contained Mizzou's potent three-point attack during the first half, holding the Tigers to just 2-of-12 from deep. Each of Missouri's first six buckets – and seven of its first eight – of the second half were from beyond the arc and took a nine-point lead midway through the second half and the Gators struggled to keep the long ball in check as the Tigers pulled away.
When It Started to Get Away:
· Gator freshman Dyandria Anderson hit a pull-up, eight-foot jumper that tied the score at 34 with 12:24 remaining.
· Missouri countered with back-to-back three-points to start an 8-0 run.
· Cassie Peoples halted the spurt with a pair of free throws, as the Tigers hit another trey countered by one from Brooke Copeland that kept the Gators within six points, 45-39, with 9:45 remaining.
· Florida didn't hit another field goal until Ronni Williams converted a three-point-play with 2:23 remaining, as UF trailed 62-45 after her points.
· During the Gator's field goal drought that spanned 7:32, the Tigers used a 13-0 run, using only one three during the spurt.
Cold Outside and Inside:
· Florida scored the first points of the game and led for 12:50 before Mizzou used a 6-0 run and took a 20-19 lead with 6:53 remaining in the first half
· The next score by either team in the first half came at the 2:26 mark, when Mizzou's Morgan Eye hit a pair of free throws
· Ronni Williams hit one free throw at the 2:14 mark of the first half that ended a 7:18 scoring drought for the Gators
Bad Early Bonus:
· Florida was whistled for its seventh personal foul of the second half with 8:26 remaining and sent the home team to the free throw line for every foul for the remaining of the contest.
· At the 6:06 mark, Mizzou was shooting two free throws for every Gator foul.
Double the Fun:
· Cassie Peoples (12 points) recorded her eighth double-figure scoring game of the year; 25th of career
· Kayla Lewis (11 rebounds) corralled a double-figure rebounding effort for the fourth time this year; 22nd time in her career
· Ronni Williams (12 points) recorded her eighth double-figure scoring game of the year; 25th of career
First Half Stats:
· Gators led at halftime (24-22) of an SEC game for the first time this year (were tied twice and trailed once in their first three league games)
· Seven different converted at least one field goal; with only Peoples hitting two
· Peoples scored a Gator-high six points with three assists and two steals
· Lewis collected a half-high 7 rebounds
· Florida shot 27.6 percent from the field (8-29); 3-10 from three
· Missouri shot 30.8 percent (8-26); 2-12 from three
· Florida led by as many as 10 points (12-2) with 14:44 remaining in the half
· Tigers held 24-21 rebounding edge; both teams with 5 offensive rebounds
· Turnovers: UF 5; Mizzou 9
Now That's Balance:
· Seven different Gators scored UF's first seven field goals: Brooke Copeland (3), Cassie Peoples (3), Haley Lorenzen, Dyandria Anderson, Kayla Lewis, Carla Batchelor and Ronni Williams
Three-Point Opportunities:
· Ronni Williams successfully converted a three-point-play with 2:23 remaining in the game; she is 6-7 in three-point-play free throws this year and 11-16 in her career
· During the first half, Carla Batchelor attempted the second three-point-play of her Gator career; missed her free throw
· Brooke Copeland was fouled shooting a three-pointer; made two of three free throws and broke a 22-22 tie with 1:37 remaining in the first half; first time this year a Gator has gone to the line for three attempts from the stripe.
Streaks & Stuff:
· Florida converted a three-pointer for the 147th consecutive game
· Cassie Peoples knocked down the 50th three-pointer of her career (18tth of the season)
· People collected her 100th career steal (44th of season)
· Kayla Lewis blocked the 70th shot of her career (10th of season)
· The 47 points was the fewest scored by the Gators this year (was 48 vs. Wisconsin)
· The 23 percent shooting mark was the lowest of the year (was 29.4 percent vs. Wisconsin)
· The 12 turnovers were the second-fewest by the Gators this year (only 11 vs. Wisconsin)
· The 14 made field goals were the fewest by the Gators this year (was 18 at Florida State)
Start Me Up:
· Today's Gator starting lineup: January Miller, Cassie Peoples, Kayla Lewis, Brooke Copeland and Haley Lorenzen
· Sixth different starting lineup this year
· Freshman Brooke Copeland replaced Carlie Needles in the lineup
· Copeland earned second career start (also vs. Wisconsin, Dec. 10)
· Lewis started her 50th consecutive game; 78th of career
· Needles had started 23 consecutive games before today; 49 in her career
· Lewis is now the only Gator who has started every game this year
Scores of Other SEC Games Played Sunday:
· #1 SOUTH CAROLINA 68, #10/11 Kentucky 60
· #7/9 Tennessee 60, ARKANSAS 51
· #20/19 Georgia 57, AUBURN 52
· #9/8 TEXAS A&M 55, LSU 48
· OLE MISS 77, Alabama 63
· VANDERBILT 78, #14/15 Mississippi State 62
Next Gator Game:
What: Gators at No. 10 Kentucky (14-3, 3-1 SEC)
When: Thursday, January 15 * 7 p.m. ET
Where: Lexington, Ky. (Memorial Coliseum)
TV: SEC Network
For all of the latest information on Florida women's basketball:
Official Website: www.gatorzone.com/basketball/women
Facebook: www.facebook.com/FloridaWomensBasketball
Twitter: @GatorZoneWBK and @CoachButlerUF
Instagram: GatorzoneWBK
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